A/N: So I've read a lot of absolutely incredible fanfictions on here (a few of those being NiGHTS ones of course), and even though I can never compare to them in my wildest dreams, I just decided to go ahead and add this story on here. It's mostly made up of headcannons and little muses I've had about the NiGHTS games over a while that I decided to make into a story, but only recently since I really only got back into the games after re-discovering NiGHTS and Reala in Sega Allstars Racing Transformed –which by the way is lege-fuckin'-dary. I honestly don't expect this to be a great story, but if I could write something that people really enjoy reading that would make me more than super-duper happy (because all I really wanna do is just read and write awesome fanfictions). So anyhoodles, here's the crummy little fiction –my first NiGHTS fanfic, might I add (and SWEAR I will finish this story despite how long I know it's going to be!). Hope you all enjoy reading :3
BETTER SUMMARY STUFF I SHOULD ADD: POST-JoD SETTING
NiGHTS and Reala will be the eventual and only pairing in this fic, I'm pretty sure. There's no one else to pair up anyway :P
The OC's of mine in this story are a Visitor and a 1st Class Nightmaren, but that'll all be explained throughout of course.
The reason I chose it to be rated M is because it'll contain some violence, swearing, possible blood n' shit and I have no idea how hectic it'll get so I was aiming to be safe. All I know is that it will be a pretty mature story, so M it was. Don't want them young'uns being scarred for life yeah?
Stuff about stuff: Regarding the genders of NiGHTS and Reala, I am well aware they are completely genderless –in fact I think it's one of the best things out of the NiGHTS games because it adds so much dimension. Buuuut, I do like to see NiGHTS as female and Reala male, cause I guess that's just how I see them. I'm completely open to viewing them as any other gender, or of course genderless, because that's how they were designed to be viewed
DISCLAIMER: I do not own any NiGHTS/SEGA content (as if I could come up with something as drop-dead-adorable as that little fucker NiGHTS XD), but I do own the visitor OC in this fic, and some other OC's that will appear as the story progresses. But that's really the only thing I own, everything else is too amazing for my mental capacity that it's almost painfully obvious I didn't create it XD
So, without further ado, please enjoy :D
xXXXXXx
"Well well, NiGHTS, it seems you've gotten yourself foolishly caught by my own work once more. How many times is that now? A hundred? More?" Slitted, cobalt eyes narrowed in on the floating being that remained royally trapped in the centre of the fair sized, crystal-like prison, the female within its ornate design simply giving a bit of an annoyed huff at the words. She floated with her arms folded, leaning back slightly with one leg limply crossed over the other as if the purple-capped Nightmaren was relaxing in some kind of invisible easy-chair. A blatantly bored look crossed her face as her eyes remained anywhere else but on the male addressing her with a bit of a cocky hiss to his words.
"Mmm, something along those numbers I do believe." She feigned a mock-yawn before finally looking at the other, who she could tell was growing easily agitated by her usual attitude towards the fellow Nightmaren. If there was one thing she never grew tired of in their numerous encounters, it was the fact she could annoy the shit out of Reala every single time. It was a bit of a guilty pleasure of hers, in all honesty.
Reala placed his hands on his gold belt and tapped one of his claws against it for a moment, ignoring the complete brush-off of his intimidation act. "If you're this easily caught over and over again, why keep fighting your fate? I find it rather pathetic that you keep allowing yourself to be imprisoned by me, you must really be gullible."
NiGHTS smiled a little, completely unfazed by the words as she pretended to inspect her nails –despite the fact she quite obviously still had gloves on. "A little pretentious, aren't we Reala? You forget that every time you capture me, I always end up breaking out in one way or another. It's quite fair to say that I find it rather sad you keep allowing me to get away." Her smile remained as she glanced at the masked Maren, fighting back a bit of an amused chuckle when his dark lips had twitched in annoyance.
"Nevertheless…" Reala hissed through a tight-lipped scowl, moving to step in-line with the translucent glass of the prison before he reached his hand upwards and dragged a clawed finger down the surface of it. The elegant holding cell was perfectly in-line with a cliff edge, so instead of simply remaining in levitation like he usually did, Reala allowed his feet to touch the grass of the perfectly straight cliff face that remained in-line with the floor of the chamber. He studied the design of the gold and glass container from behind his personalised Persona, seemingly ignoring her with little ease. "This Capture is different than before, it has been specifically designed to keep you within its walls."
"I'm literally shaking." NiGHTS answered simply and with a great over exaggeration of mock-fear. She placed the back of her hand against her forehead, giving a dramatic sigh before pretending to faint backwards –only to perform a complete backflip and end upright once more. "Better do away with me now before you end up regretting your underestimation of my skills!" Her face became serious for a second before she grinned. "… Again."
Reala felt the anger within him starting to burn at his spine. "I'd kill you if I could…"
NiGHTS simply chuckled. "Did you that when you're really annoyed you're face goes all scrunched-up like a little kid? So adorable." She looked at him and grinned again, swaying her leg out idly as her eyes flashed with obvious, child-like taunting.
Fed up with her frustrating behaviour Reala suddenly snarled in fury behind his golden Persona, the pale-skinned Maren feeling his hands bail into tight, strong fists at his sides. "You and your damned infantile attitude, it makes me sick that we are of the same rank! I'm only trying to make everything easier for you and you're too damned infuriating to listen to reason!" His slitted eyes became thin as they burned with rage and frustration. Usually Reala was composed and passive, strong in a sense that he wasn't easily affected by anything. Yet that had never been the case when it came to the subject of the other female 1st class. Ever since their creation so very long ago by the god known as Wizeman the Wicked, Reala had not known another being that could affect him in such a drastic way.
It was one of the reasons why he hated her so much, yet all the while on the inside, in a deeper part of his psyche… he admired her.
"Oh please." NiGHTS rolled her eyes at that, suddenly doing a small, graceful forwards-loop in the air before straightening up and into a proud sort of stance. She seemed to easily brush off the silver tongue of Reala's words and instead remained with a tight, slightly annoyed look on her face. "I rebelled against that monster because what he was doing, and what he is still doing is just plain wrong! Do you honestly believe everything would be easier if I returned to him, just to be ruled and caged like the rest of you? Nothing would change, Reala, and someone as intelligent as you should be able to understand that." As her deep, cobalt-blue eyes narrowed, she was slightly relieved to see the tension in the other's shoulders begin to relax a little, his face growing the faintest bit softer. She hoped he would see reason this time, but she was also very aware that his opposing resolve to be loyal at all costs was just as strong as her need for freedom was.
Despite their venomous relationship, NiGHTS couldn't deny she also admired his strength and resolve to be completely loyal, especially when it was to a monster as horrible as Wizeman could be.
NiGHTS curled her fingers into relaxed fists and placed her knuckles against her hips, giving her head a bit of a dissatisfied shake before she continued to watch him on the outside of her glass prison. "Wizeman going to do everything in his power to take over all of the worlds, and someone like him shouldn't ever be allowed to possess that much power. It'll only end up tearing the dimensions apart! And without people like me to stand up against him, he'll never be defeated once and for all. It's obvious that Wizeman will keep resurrecting himself no matter how many times he's defeated, and it's obvious that the combined forces of Visitors and myself just aren't enough to stop him for good… All we can do is… quell him for a few years at a time. Defeat isn't going to come easily."
A flicker of sadness crossed her azure eyes that were so similar the Nightmaren's that stood before her, watching as Reala did nothing to make her believe he was acknowledging her determined words, her pleading stare. However, NiGHTS thought with a hint of ever-present hope in her chest, he wasn't doing anything to stop her from talking either. Honestly she had no idea where they stood anymore; the act of her rebellion against Wizeman had left many things between her and Reala in shattered pieces and all in all very vague, but at least it seemed they still had something between them. If their tie had been severed completely, Reala wouldn't always listen to her the way he did, even if he acted like he didn't care. He wouldn't allow her to talk and voice her side of the story every time they met. He probably wouldn't even look her in the eye if he completely despised her the way he so claimed… Yet he did, every time. Unfortunately, she just didn't understand why. Reala had every right to completely ignore her, to hate her, but he still listened anyway.
It was times like this NiGHTS simply wished they could go back to the way they used to be. Back when they could look at each other without wondering if the sapphire gazes really held as much hate and tension as they so claimed.
The violet-clad jester's eyes saddened a little, a heaviness in her heart beginning to form like a solid rock and weighing her down as she continued to watch the other. Behind his elegant mask of gold, the symbol of his deep and undying loyalty to the Lord of Nightmares, NiGHTS could see that the slitted eyes of sapphire were also being weighed down with a heavy heart. She hoped desperately that this time would be the last, this fight would be their last fight and that she could finally make the other see her reasoning behind her motives. All she ever wanted was for the other to at least try to understand what she was doing, the reason she'd rebelled to begin with. It would be too much to ask for the other to let go of his hatred for her, after all she did leave without a proper explanation or even so much as a goodbye, and she knew it had probably destroyed a fair amount of him. But just getting Reala to at least understand her reasons for the mutiny would be enough.
NiGHTS moved close to the translucent glass of the cage she was being held in against her will, completely letting go of her irritation for being locked up for perhaps the millionth time and instead focusing on the male of equal height. Her white, satin gloves touched the cool glass, frowning when Reala had moved a step back from the close distance and avoided her gaze. It had caused a spark of hurt to flicker in both their chests. "Reala, surely you must be able to see the truth of the matter here… A being like that will only throw everything out of balance if he is allowed to gain too much power… I'm just trying to make things right… For both worlds." Her eyes refused to leave his, despite the fact the crimson Maren continued to force himself not to look at her. The large, azure-slit eyes that belonged to the female jester filled themselves with sorrow like deep pools; NiGHTS simply wishing things between them could be different. But in the end, all she ever felt like was a dog chasing its tail.
Reala watched her with dark eyes, looking so different to what NiGHTS remembered behind the restricting golden hue of his Persona. Even if he did come to understand her reasoning, NiGHTS knew that he'd changed a lot from the person he used to be.
Reala's dark lips curled in a way that showed off his pointed canines, giving a slight hiss of anger as he stared at her. However he could feel his eyes deceiving him, only reflecting the hurt he could feel within his chest. He hated it all, he hated having to act so cruel and uncaring towards her. But it just sort of… happened. Every single time they met, he'd end up retaliating with venomous words or actions. He didn't even understand why it happened, but he just couldn't stop himself from getting aggressive, even when his mind still remained confused. He knew he'd changed just as much as NiGHTS did, but he was too consumed with the past and her betrayal to bother finding out why.
After a while, all that escaped the male Nightmaren was a quiet sigh. He looked at the grass beneath his feet with a heavy feeling in his chest. "I can't betray Master Wizeman…"
It was at times like this, when he felt his heart beginning to pound and pulse sickening amounts of adrenaline through his system that he had to wonder if he really was following the right path. Where he felt himself wonder if his loyalties were truly just, especially when NiGHTS was the only thing in existence that could make his heart react in such a way.
NiGHTS kept her hands pressed against the clear surface, the violet-capped jester allowing herself to gently lower her feet to the glass floor. When she touched the ground, which was surprisingly a rare occurrence for her, NiGHTS was finally eye-to-eye with the masculine being. Reala glanced up at her and didn't move though following her movement with his eyes, still trying to look as impassive as he could despite his inner conflict. He remained a safe distance even despite the fact they were separated by the glass of the Capture, his hands tensing at his sides and seeming to be the only thing, aside from his eyes, that informed her he wasn't really angry. But he was definitely frustrated… and wounded.
"And I won't ever stop fighting. For the sake of what is right, I'll never allow myself to give up on my morals and go down without putting up one hell of a battle beforehand. And if that means I have to fight you over and over again… I will…" She dropped her head for a moment and sighed heavily, hating the thought of fighting Reala for the rest of eternity. "But I promise you I won't enjoy it." She spoke the last words softly, her hands sliding down the glass and eventually leaving it, instead falling to her sides in bitter defeat.
The vermillion-clad jester felt himself grow a little weaker when she'd taken her hands away, however he held himself without the slightest inclination of allowing his strong demeanour to crumble. It seemed he always had to watch his tongue when he was around her… around the one he used to be so close to. The only one he'd ever been close to. Whenever they were around each other, he sometimes slipped between the past and the present, his heart unable to tell that both NiGHTS and he were not what they used to be anymore.
He scowled in a more uneased manned than that of an angered one, looking away from the other's gaze that seemed almost too powerful. "Then why not leave and go into hiding or something? Why make yourself so easy to track down and capture? You're more than capable of slipping past us…" For a moment, Reala lost his train of thought and instead felt the gravity of his words bring him to a state of sombreness. In all honesty, he couldn't stand those words. He couldn't stand being the one to have to state that ultimate truth, not to NiGHTS anyway.
He couldn't bear the thought of NiGHTS disappearing for good. After all, they fought and argued whenever they were in the same general space, but without that, what would he have? He felt as though he lived for the interaction at times.
Reala groaned a little and massaged a spot on his temple. He felt a tension in his spine that often occurred when he was stressed begin to settle back atop his strong shoulders like his own, personal demon. He sighed heavily for a moment, gazing at the quiet female once more to see she was still staring at him, this time with slightly wider eyes.
Her gaze didn't waver, her mouth slightly agape as if she was searching desperately for the words to answer her old friend… though it was to no avail. She knew her answer to that… but she just couldn't bring herself to say it. What use would it be anyway? It wouldn't do any good… not now.
Before she could say anything however, a sensation that the both of them knew all too well had suddenly washed over them, causing both 1st Class Nightmaren to glance over in a direction that housed a sort of central hub for Visitors, whenever they happened to arrive. Normal dreamers who entered the dimensions of either Nightopia or Nightmare often went unnoticed by them until the landscape and inhabitants would morph and change to suit whatever dream they were caught in at the time. However both NiGHTS and Reala knew this feeling was different. Whichever Dreamers had reached the lands of Nightopia today housed within them the rare and well sought-after Red Ideya of Courage… and that meant that not only the two jester-like Nightmarens were aware that these dreamers were now in the dimension…
It meant Wizeman was now aware as well.
NiGHTS gaze quickly snapped into the other's divided attention, her hands once again touching themselves to the glass of her holding cell, this time however in more of an outwardly pleading manner. "I told you I'd escape again. Visitors have pure hearts; they'll free me from here." She disliked sounding so sure of the idea, feeling as though it simply made her seem cocky and even a little pretentious, but it was out of habit. This happened a fair bit after all.
Reala's eyes narrowed a he glanced back at the female Maren with a hint of animosity for the truth in her words, after all it really did happen an aggravatingly numerous amount of times. This time however, she was imprisoned before meeting the valuable human dreamers, so Reala now had the upper hand in the matter.
"That may be true, but this time is different. You're in there, and so haven't had the chance to sway them with your childish notions. I, however, am out here, and on a constant mission to find red Ideya for Master Wizeman." Reala cracked a mocking grin to the female who was all but trapped, the crimson jester giving a small, darkly amused sort of chuckle as he cracked his individual knuckles evenly. "…By any means necessary, of course."
NiGHTS eyes became wide at the cynical edge to the fellow 1st Class' words. "Oh no Reala, don't you dare think about hurting those children!"
"Maybe I will, maybe I won't." He replied curtly, shrugging his broad shoulders once as if he were completely brushing off the previous moment of closeness they had encountered. He folded his arms. "Depends on how obedient they are, and how easily they hand over their Ideya and sink into a nightmare. You'll never know the outcome, because you're stuck in there." His blatant disregard for the Visitor's safety only caused NiGHTS to grow a look of fury on her face.
"How dare you!" The female's voice became near hysterical with panic over what Reala could do, whether or not he chose to do it. She knew he was much more dedicated to Wizeman than she had ever been, ever since their time of creation, which meant he could have gone to much greater lengths in order to please him. Whether or not he'd kill a Visitor for his master however, she wasn't certain of.
She honestly hoped she was wrong about that thought however.
Reala unfolded his masculine arms and gave her a small, discourteous sort of bow to the female Nightmaren that was all but a sitting duck.
"Ciao."
With that, the crimson jester took his leave and flew off like a bullet through the air, ignoring her angered cries for remorse and reason all the while. NiGHTS wasn't sure whether the other was serious or not, like his arrogant outlook over the matter suggested, but she still didn't want to just sit around and wait to find out. Red Ideya was precious and rare, and even if Reala didn't end up taking it from the new Visitors himself, NiGHTS was fully aware that there were many other Nightmaren who would have no trouble in taking it by force.
"Reala! Don't be an animal!" Her cries went unanswered as the feminine Maren watched him completely disappear, heading in the direction of a small area, outside of the time and space of Nightopia and Nightmare that existed as a central gateway for all Visitors. She felt her heart rate beginning to pound with panic over the thought of harm coming to any being, especially that of a human dreamer. Many humans believed that no real harm could reach them within a dream… but many of them had no real idea what they were saying.
"I just hope that silly old fool of an Owl has explained things, maybe even sent the Visitor somewhere else. Anything that will stop Reala from getting to them first…" She let out an angered noise of frustration and curled her hand into a tight fist, before she drove it into the glass wall of the prison that caged her. It did absolutely nothing however, as she thought it would, aside from make her knuckles ache a little, and only sought to increase her feeling of defeat. She stepped back and gave a heavy sigh, giving a slight groan to herself as he touched her thumb and index finger to her eyes before gently rubbing them a little.
Of all the times for Reala to trap me in one of these stupid things and it turns out to be right when another child with the most precious Ideya in the dimension shows up! It's been years since that last happened… just my luck.
She looked around the elegantly designed cage she'd been placed into. I have to find a way out of this place.
"Uh, excuse me." NiGHTS gave a loud yelp of surprise at the sudden voice that had emitted behind her, the purple-clad jester whirling around with slightly wide, cat-slit eyes and only being overcome with even more shock when her gaze had settled on the person it belonged to. She froze in place, despite the fact she was gracefully floating as usual, and wondered for a moment if she'd gone mad with her own panic. Her chest heaved a little from the scare the other had given her, and for a while all the Nightmaren did was stare at the newcomer. All in all, she'd never seen anything like it.
From personal experience, NiGHTS understood that the human before her was male… however that was the least of her curiosities. She'd only ever met children in all her years, but she had never personally met and adult one before, especially in the Night Dimension. She figured it was mainly because Human adults were usually disconnected from their imaginations, and therefore didn't dream as much. Maybe it was because of this they didn't have the power to cross into Nightopia and Nightmare, but NiGHTS didn't know for sure.
Yet, to her surprise, this human that stood before her appeared to be an adult… which left her rather stunned for how to react. She could always relate to children, after all she had a similar personality to them and found them easy to talk to. But to this encounter, she was stuck for what to do. Was she meant to act like her usual energetic self, or was she meant to act differently? She was aware that most adults didn't have much in common with younger children; did that mean she'd have to act differently? Approach the first impression with a different attitude?
The thought of having to act as anything but her cheerful, bright and frankly weird -though in a good way- self made NiGHTS a little uncomfortable.
The human male before her seemed a bit awkward for what to do, being just as shocked as she was and unable to say much in order to justify his appearance. He was tall, probably only a few inches taller than two NiGHTS put together (or at least that's how the Nightmaren found herself describing it as). His hair looked soft and flicked backwards in various strands, however it seemed to be fading out of a healthy blonde and into a white-silver hue. Strange though, she could tell it wasn't from age. His skin seemed rather pale too, causing his soft, teal-coloured eyes to stand out the most of all. He was dressed in a simple pair of slightly faded jeans and an ash grey hooded jumper, and NiGHTS couldn't help but notice how out of place the human seemed in such a bright world like Nightopia.
Fearing it was just a hallucination out of her own panic, NiGHTS tilted her head slightly. She opened her mouth to say something, but afterwards shut it. She didn't know how to start off the conversation, and it would probably be a little too abrupt if she requested for them to Dualize in order to free herself straight away, especially without giving a decent explanation of… well, everything beforehand. And time was of the essence, if this was the only Visitor in the Night Dimension, it meant Reala would be back at any moment.
And if that happened before she could be given a chance to escape, it meant he'd drag her and possibly the Visitor back to Wizeman kicking and screaming if he had to.
She searched her head for something, anything that could end the awkward silence. After a while, she finally managed to start with: "Are you… a human?" It was a silly question because she was sure the taller being was most definitely a human, they weren't hard to mistake after all, but it was better than nothing.
The pale haired man before her perked up a little in surprise at the question; hardly expecting a voice as proper and energetic as that to escape this unknown creature before he gave a bit of a crooked smile. "If I'm not then my parents must have been telling me some serious lies growing up." From her voice alone, he felt as if the purple, jester-like entity could be trusted.
The Nightmaren's crystal blue eyes widened a little. A joke this early in their meeting? It made her feel a little better. NiGHTS felt herself relax a little, watching as the tall male gently itched the side of his jaw, at a patch of the small, dark stubble that lined his angular jawline. In an idle part of her head, she mused silently about how she'd never personally met a human with facial hair before.
"How did you get here? I mean, without proper explanation and guidance I'm fairly certain this world can seem a bit strange." Nights allowed herself to slowly move forward until she was gracefully drifting just beyond the crystal wall of her encasement. Despite their abrupt meeting, NiGHTS had a feeling she could let her guard down around this being, and between the two of them the feeling was rather mutual. She'd heard that Adults could be dangerous, because the natural innocence of their childhood was often lost completely. Hence the reason Adults were completely rare and even unheard of in the Night Dimension. But this man didn't seem dangerous at all, especially on his first impression. It was something about his pale eyes… they almost confused her.
The man before her pocketed his hands and gazed around the bright world, a tiny, however noticeable smile gracing his naturally pale features. NiGHTS watched the man closely, still studying him and how different he was. After a few moments, the fair-haired being gave a small shrug of his shoulders as his eyes became soft, seemingly very pleased. "It's nicer than where I come from, what I usually see most days." For a moment he appreciated how warm the sunlight in this world felt. "Oh, and I was taught enough things by that old Owl in that fountain area. He seemed nice enough and told me a good general overview about this place."
NiGHTS grinned, her spirits beginning to perk up once more. It was a relief to know this human wasn't completely disoriented by how different Nightopia was. "Let me guess, this owl wore an old man suit, glasses and had a tendency to ramble on and on without stopping for a break?"
The pale haired man suddenly smiled brightly. "I slipped away while he was waffling on about how the whole timezone works in this place. He seemed nice and all, but was a little exhausting. He reminded me a lot of my grandpa."
NiGHTS' grin suddenly widened. "I think we're going to get along just fine." She suddenly looked away, sensing that something was once again amiss in the air. That could have meant that Reala was back, and most likely pissed off over having a Visitor slip by him, but she wasn't certain. There was no time to wonder however. She gazed back at the human with slightly worrying eyes, touching her gloved palms to the cool glass of the Capture as she knew they had to leave and escape the crimson jester's wrath. "Listen, in the next few moments things will probably become very strange for you and everything is going to pass you in a rushed way, but I promise if you bear with me I'll explain everything later. Would you please help me?"
The pale haired man's teal eyes widened a little in surprise over the desperation flooding her slightly accented words and the way she was looking at him, her hands pressed against the glass of her obvious prison and her slitted, cobalt eyes wide with fear. He had no idea what was making this entity so tense, but he didn't seem to find much reason to decline. If this was all a dream like the Owl had claimed, or so he gathered after drifting in and out of attention during their talk, then he was pretty much up for just going with the flow of things.
After a moment's thought, the taller human shrugged his shoulders and removed his hands from the warm pockets of the ash-grey attire. "Yeah, alright. I'll certainly help if you need it." His eyes were soft and understanding as he smiled with a gentle nod. In that moment, NiGHTS noticed that the man's eyes seemed to be quite tired.
She nodded with a grateful smile on her face before backing away from the glass of the cage walls. "Thank you! I promise I'll answer any questions you have about this place as soon as we're out of danger."
The adult frowned a little. In danger?
"This thing I'm encased in is called a NiGHTS Capture –famously named, but it's designed to keep me inside. It doesn't affect people like you, so you can walk right through its walls." She remained simply floating in the centre of the containment, her lack of words and seemingly patient, waiting look informed the human that it was his turn to move.
The blonde frowned a little as he glanced down at the gap that remained between the stable cliff he stood on and the translucent flooring of the 'NiGHTS Capture'. It was at least two feet wide, and the drop down to the earth below was easily around a storey high. Not so bad, but if he were to misjudge the jump he could easily break a bone or two. But, then again, if this was just a dream, could he really get hurt that severely?
"You don't have to be wary, I mean at this height I'm sure it's a bit daunting, but you can do it." The taller being glanced at the Nightmaren as she smiled at him and shot him a double thumbs-up, trying to reassure the obvious unease he was starting to feel over the high drop. He chuckled a bit nervously and rubbed at the back of his neck.
"Nah, it doesn't bother me too much… I think" He was half-lying of course, but his apprehension wasn't going to stop him. He hadn't had anything this interesting happen to him in a long while, so he was determined to see how long he could play it out for.
He stepped forward to the very edge of the cliff and decided not to glance down in case it resulted in vertigo, instead stretching his hand out and testing to see what the smaller being meant when she'd explained the concept of the Capture before. To his surprise, his fingers had phased through the glass-like wall with ease, as if it didn't even exist and instead was just a mirage. His eyebrows furrowed a little in interest as he studied his hand gingerly, before forming it into a point with his index finger as he glanced at the floor. "And what of the floor? I won't just fall right through it and die? Because that would really ruin my day…"
NiGHTS could help but chuckle in amusement. This being was certainly thoughtful about the little things; he didn't seem as trusting as a child. Most of the younger Visitors had a tendency to just go ahead with things without properly thinking them through, ignorant to the possibilities and outcomes. They were completely innocent, after all.
"Certainly not, that would be just cruel! And I was in no way created with cruelty in my blood. I'm not one for playing horrible tricks on people." She allowed herself to gently lower from levitation until her strange boots touched the floor. She smiled and placed her hands against her hips, tapping her foot once against the solid flooring for good measure. "It's just as sturdy as the ground you're on." The man before her remained silent for a moment, his hand on his chin in thought before he nodded once.
"Alright, I guess I might as well just go with all of this. Overthinking things never helped anyone." He pushed his sleeves up loosely before keeping his eyes to the floor of the Ideya Palace, ignoring the gap and instead prepping himself for the small leap he'd push himself into performing. It wasn't that much of a fantastic feat… at all. But for someone like him, he knew it could be risky.
NiGHTS nodded and watched closely as the man seemed to be mentally prepping himself, and for a while she wondered about his whole deal. The arms that were now exposed seemed somewhat thin for an adult, at least compared to most of the one's she'd seen in the real world and especially considering the fact the thick jumper he wore had made them seem bigger. She wondered just how much there was to the human, considering he'd probably lived for twice the amount of years of all her other Visitor's she'd met. She wondered how much more he'd seen, how much more he knew than the countless other, younger dreamers that came to this world. More so, she wondered how this man possessed the Red Ideya of Courage, and what had caused him to gain it to begin with.
She decided he was definitely interesting, worth learning from. And, ultimately, he had to be protected. She had a sickly, gut-wrenching feeling that Reala would do all he could to take the rare Ideya from this being, he wouldn't even spare a second thought over what the adult could possibly teach them, the interesting things he'd have to his name and appearance. The other 1st Class never paid attention to the bigger things, only the orders he was given from the God of Nightmares. What was worse was the fact he never used to be so close-minded.
It saddened NiGHTS to think about how far gone the crimson jester now was.
It was only when the adult had landed right before her with a small stumble and a hushed swear did NiGHTS recall reality. She snapped her head back up to meet the sudden appearance of the other, the feminine Nightmaren being a bit taken aback by the fact they were no longer separated by glass. She was also very relieved however, knowing they would both be out of danger soon enough.
The blonde stood up and brushed his knees down slightly, having half-landed on them after the leap of faith and inner terror. "Well that was certainly terrifying." He managed a weak sort of smile despite the fact his heart was having a royal fit in the confinements of his chest. For a moment he looked at how far the ground was through the glass flooring, feeling a little disoriented from it. Standing straight before brushing his hands off on his hooded jumper and outstretching an arm in a sign of good gesture, the adult Visitor smiled a little. "Now that we're properly acquainted, my name's Memphis. Weird I know, everyone tells me, but believe me I've had plenty of time to grow used to it." He chuckled a bit at his own joke, causing NiGHTS to bow gracefully before grinning energetically herself.
The violet-clad Maren spared no hesitation in taking the man's hand and shaking it once, remaining with her head held high even despite the fact the being before her still stood at around a full head taller –even with the female floating above the floor. "Sounds like a good name to me! It's catchy, and I've certainly never heard anything like it. A hint of uniqueness is always good to any person." Their hands dropped from the greeting touch and NiGHTS placed both gloved knuckles at her hips. "As for my name, it's-"
"NIGHTS!" Both the startled Nightmaren and the human had turned at the infuriated snarl of her title, their unified eyes of teal and azure settling instantly on the utterly fuming gaze of the previously M.I.A jester.
NiGHTS spared a moment to turn back to the man with a blank look on her face, before pointing with a thumb to the masked Maren that remained floating several metres away from the Capture. "…Yeah, that. Capital N, little I, capital G-H-T-S." She turned to the icy glare of Reala's feline-slit eyes and gave him a bit of a mockingly annoyed gaze, the side of her mouth turning upwards in an obviously amused smirk. "You stole my thunder Reala!"
"I'll tear that smile right off your face!" Reala almost screamed at his voice cracked with fury, his fingers tensing in a way that made his curved talons catch the sunlight in a deadly display of ferocity. Inside the glass prison, NiGHTS turned swiftly to the taller human and frowned a little.
"We'd better get out of here before his bite becomes worse than his bark." She itched the side of her face a little as she seemed to become rather disheartened, the human dreamer before her straightening in surprise at the words.
"You know that guy?" He glanced at the soaring, jester-like being that seemed to be focusing his power in an unmoving, offensive stance. "He seems terrifying."
"You don't know the half of it." NiGHTS murmured as her thoughts drifted elsewhere for a moment. She shook her head free of the thoughts for a moment however and snapped back into focus, quickly remembering the danger they were in now that Reala was blinded by his own rage. She looked the pale-haired being dead in the eye with seriousness as her hand raised and remained opened before him. "This is the part that will probably have to be explained after it's all over. Once we get out of here I promise I'll make sense of it all, okay?"
Memphis watched her for a moment, his eyebrows knitting together in slight hesitation as his teal-clad gaze moved from her eyes to her hand and remained there. He gathered she wanted him to copy her movements and that it was probably going to lead to something very different –hence her need for action without any explanation. After a moment, he shook off his unease and raised his hand to greet hers, a soft, cyan-coloured light beginning to emit between their palms as they grew close together. The teal-eyed Visitor pulled back slightly in shock over the supernatural reaction to their close contact, having it feel very different from before. Unlike the simple handshake, he could physically feel a spark igniting between their outstretched limbs that seemed to represent itself as a palm-sized flame of electricity, even traveling further up his arm to somehow settle itself into his chest. He'd never experienced anything like it, and he had a good feeling it was leading to something even more spectacular.
"You don't have to worry; I'm going to lend you some of my power in return for you lending me a portion of your courage. Working together we can escape easily." Her eyes didn't deceive the truth of her words as the taller male stared at her for a short while, holding his hand away from her. His chest filled with a deep breath that only pushed through his hesitation, their hands connecting not a moment later as both beings felt themselves caught in a warm, electrifying light. Without any explanation, the Dualization of NiGHTS and Memphis had transpired.
And nothing could have prepared the Nightmaren for the reaction that had come from it.
"JESUS FLIPPING CHRIST I CAN SEE FOREVER AND I'M SUDDENLY WEARING A LOT OF PINKS AND PURPLES." From his control over her body, NiGHTS had heard Memphis suddenly explode with his voice a few octaves higher than the norm. He outstretched one of NiGHTS legs and looked at it for a while, obviously having trouble comprehending their duel form while the Nightmaren simply let the man go. She kept her attention on Reala all the while however, who had begun to form a large, deadly ball of gold energy within the palms of his clawed hands.
From her side of the control, NiGHTS' eyes narrowed. "I hate to cut the craziness short, believe me it's the most interesting reaction a Visitor has had in a while. But until we're away from that lunatic, I'm going to have to take control of this Dualization."
Memphis became aware of himself once again. "Dualization?"
"You aren't going anywhere, NiGHTS! I'm going to personally rip the Red Ideya from that Visitor's heart and drag you back to Wizeman myself!" His voice snapped with rage as his clawed hands twitched with the gathering energy between his palms. "I refuse to fail him again!" Reala roared as he suddenly lifted his hands above his head, raising the globe-sized orb of glowing power with it as it almost doubled in size.
From within the prison that was now ineffective due to their Dualization, Both NiGHTS and Memphis's eyes widened in unison as the crimson 1st Class threw his hands downwards and hurled the massive ball of deadly energy directly at glass monument. With an almost deafening crack, the attack had reached the NiGHTS Capture and knocked it from its anti-gravitational position above the earth, causing it to begin to fall.
Forgetting the situation for a moment, Memphis had given a slight yelp of surprise and curled into a ball of protection, shielding their head with crossed arms as he awaited the solid glass to smash into their synchronised form. However, at the command of NiGHTS all around his mind, the man had opened their eyes just in time to see the crystal exterior of the Capture fall to the grassy earth below them and suddenly shatter with an ear-splitting thunder. From somewhere in their combined physical bodies, Memphis swore he could feel the female Maren wince at the sight.
"Whoah…" The human dreamer mused in a mixture of shock and awe. Before he'd even had the time to marvel over the intensity of the masked attacker's abilities, NiGHTS had kicked him out of a stupor as she overthrew his control over their Dualization and turned back to the enemy.
"There's no time to become idle! Reala isn't one to mess around and he'll do away with us both if given the chance!" Her deep, feline eyes narrowed with a heavy tension over the words. No matter how much she wished it weren't true, she had a deep understanding that those words wouldn't change. The fact Reala had destroyed his own Capture just to try and stop her was proof enough of that.
Her body straightened and took a proud stance as she placed her hands on her hips, her cobalt eyes becoming stronger as she frowned through tight lips. "That's enough Reala. You've lost this round, so just let the Visitor and myself go."
"You think I'll just let you go again? And have Wizeman even more furious with me?" He pulled his body into a readied stance, claws flexed out in front of him and his eyes narrowing in on the violet jester like a hunter in for the kill. His eyes grew thin, even slightly pained at his next, well thought-over words. In a deeper part of himself, one that Reala wasn't entirely aware even existed, he felt a painful ache begin to reveal itself.
I'm not letting you get away again… I can't.
He was relieved to find out NiGHTS hadn't noticed his lapse in attention, the female keeping her hands on her hips strongly as her shoulders loosened. She was well aware that with the visitor's Ideya to help her, Reala wasn't going to be capturing her today. The fact he seemed so desperate not to fail in his mission and anger Wizeman sent a pang of pain through her heart however, causing the purple jester to frown painfully. She took a breath and kept herself strong, knowing that if Reala was able to spot even the tiniest bit of doubt within her he would surely use it to his advantage. The crimson jester had always been talented at things like that.
"Be sure to tell Wizeman that I have absolutely no intention of returning to his army. Any time soon or ever again. And no amount of trickery or imprisonment will change my mind!" As she spoke without fear before the other Maren, she could tell Reala was almost at his limit again his eyes were blazing with that much anger. To a voice that only reached herself however, NiGHTS felt herself pleading to the other. "And please, this time… try to see reason…"
NIGHTS knew it was idiotic to think Reala would ever stray from their creator's side, but that didn't mean her heart listened.
With one last, heated glare between the two 1st Classes, NiGHTS gave one small, final nod to the other before taking her leave as quickly as she could. She knew Reala was most likely going to explode with anger over the failed attempt to capture her for about the 200th time running, but she had a feeling he knew he'd lost this round. He didn't give chase and instead watched her go, his clawed fingertips digging into the palms of his hands so fiercely he was sure he'd felt the skin split apart and coppery blood begin to spill over. He felt so completely corrupted with anger that his vision was fading in parts, and no matter how much his loyal mind screamed at him to chase after the traitorous entity and finish the job for Wizeman's sake… he just couldn't do it. He had lost, he was well aware of that, but his usual drive to do whatever he could to redeem himself and keep attempting to capture the girl had just… fallen apart.
Reala slowly released his hands and felt his palms begin to sting, the male Nightmaren turning when he'd heard a chorus of beating wings. Behind him, two of the lesser Nightmarens, barely 2nd classes, had arrived upon seeing the defeat. When the higher-ups were assigned missions, they was also usually given subordinates to bring along in case something happened, and most of the time it was two or three 3rd classes that rode on large, multi-coloured bird-like Nightmarens that were assigned to Reala. The cyan-eyed jester personally never liked the tag-alongs; he'd always preferred doing things alone.
Ever since his original partner had defected, that was.
"Lord Reala," one of the subordinates began slowly, fearing that the 1st Class' temper would flare up and have him take it out on either one of them, "do we give chase after the traitor or…?"
"Leave, now." Reala hissed suddenly, venom coating his words as his eyes nearly cut them in half right then and there. The lesser Nightmaren seemed to pull back slightly, his eyes becoming wide with both fear and confusion as hands that gripped the reigns of his winged mount became tight and nervous.
"B-but sir, the orders from Master Wizeman…" The smaller being would have said more if it weren't for the sudden vicious backhand that had struck him across the face, almost knocking him off his saddle and causing the birds to begin screeching and beating their wings in panicked fashions. Reala turned and snarled at the two with a deadly glare in his eyes, causing both to instantly become silent and fearful.
"I was given the order from Master Wizeman, not you. In which case I'll be the one to deal with him when I get back. Don't you dare ever forget your place like that again or you'll be lucky to remain with your head between your shoulders."
The lower class remained at attention with his eyes wide and his mouth slightly open from shock, his cheek still red before he rubbed it slightly. The Nightmaren bowed quickly when Reala had given him all but a deathly cold gaze. "Y-yes, Lord Reala…"
The second of the two bowed as well. "Forgive us sir."
Sick with the display of absolutely zero backbone, Reala almost spat off to the side in disgust. He threw his hand out and turned away slightly. "Get out of my sight. I'll return to Nightmare soon enough."
The two subordinates bowed once more, filled with skittish attitude and terror over the absolute power of the 1st Class. They spared no time in turning and flying off as quickly as their birds could carry them, leaving Reala to seethe in utter annoyance over how pathetic the lower classes were becoming. No one ever stood up to him anymore, there was nobody who had so much as a spine in the Nightmaren Army that could give him a fair fight.
Not since she had left.
Sighing heavily as he felt the sickening wave of failure wash over him, Reala rubbed his eyes a little for lack of anything better to do. How was he going to kneel before his creator, the God of Nightmare, for the millionth time and explain that he'd failed again?
But more so… why had he failed again? He seemed so sure that this time he'd finally capture the traitor. Reala closed his eyes and tried to find some explanation for it.
Was it because I wanted her to get away… again?
Reala turned away from the light of the sun and rubbed his temple with his clawed fingers, groaning to himself out of obvious frustration. He knew he was never going to hear the end of it from his Master, and what was worse he didn't have a good enough excuse as to why NiGHTS had slipped through their fingertips again. He moved his hand to cover his eyes, the light of the world beginning to irritate his senses.
What is going on with me?
After a while, Reala turned back to the direction NiGHTS had retreated in with the visitor, and for once in his life he didn't care. He didn't feel the need to give chase.
He was so exhausted of the routine.
He wondered where NiGHTS had gone, where she always went after escaping danger. In this world she never had the need to hide, she really was free. And it was at times like this he had to wonder if it was all worth it. If everything NiGHTS was saying was true, that Wizeman really was the enemy, then what exactly was he doing? What was he supposed to do?
Feeling an ache beginning to form itself in his head, Reala shook free the thoughts. This wasn't the time to think about that, he knew if he lingered too long, Wizeman would only become impatient. For a moment, he spared one more glance to the horizon that seemed so far away. The horizon that somewhere held his old friend.
"We'll never truly be divided, will we, NiGHTS?"
For the entirety of the escape, NiGHTS hadn't really said anything, thoughts for the other 1st Class consuming her entire attention as the Dualized beings soared over various landscapes of Nightopia. For a while, the blonde man didn't say much either, mainly immersed in the wonder the new world caused him to even notice how quiet the female was being. Though, he'd grown aware that something was causing her tension a while before, however he felt unable to bring up any words to try and spark up a conversation between them. He was still reeling from the whole ordeal of waking up in a world so unlike his own, but felt as though he was supposed to just keep quiet and get used to it.
He'd lived a lot of his life by those rules anyway.
"So…" Memphis started slowly, deciding to just go with whatever came to mind. "This place is called Nightopia, or something?"
The words completely snapped NiGHTS out of her heavy stupor as the female maren stopped in their pursuit of no particular destination. "Oh, sorry. I didn't mean to space out like that; I suppose I do owe you a better explanation, don't I?" The violet-capped jester quickly descended to the grassy earth below them and touched her hands to the perfect diamond of Red Ideya on her chest, quickly separating the two from their combined form and bowing a little apologetically. She felt incredibly guilty for having become that absorbed in her own deep thoughts about the meeting with the other Nightmaren, but she would have been lying if she denied it to have stirred some otherwise forgotten feelings.
Stumbling a little from their sudden split, Memphis offered a weak smile. "Don't apologise for that, everyone gets caught up in their own stuff from time to time." NiGHTS nodded slowly, but she still couldn't deny how stupid she felt for spacing out that severely. It rarely ever happened to her at all. She straightened and touched a hand to her chest before offering the man a smile, deciding to ignore whatever was going on in her head and instead carry out the usual meeting she'd have with Visitors.
"Nevertheless, you deserve a proper introduction! As I said, my name is NiGHTS, it's a pleasure to meet you -properly this time." She bowed elegantly before standing proudly once more, sweeping her hand out in the air as she turned to the landscape around them. "And this world is known as Nightopia –or The Night Dimension, as the locals call it. But I'm sure Owl explained this all to you when you first got here, right?"
The blonde man smiled in amusement and nodded, pocketing one of his hands as he gazed around the forest-type area they had landed in. "Yeah, I remember the names. He was a bit hard to listen to without your thoughts wandering though."
NiGHTS chuckled and nodded in a wholehearted agreement. "You got that right. But you don't have to worry about getting bored anymore; you're teamed up with me. Your utterly awesome and devilishly handsome guide to the personal world of your dreams!" She danced circles around the taller male, her graceful levitation leaving small, shimmering spots in the air as Memphis followed her with his eyes. Arriving back to her original position, NiGHTS struck a pose that reminded the human of a certain superhero that favoured red underwear worn on the outside of his spandex suit, and he could help but chuckle to himself at the thought.
"So I am dreaming?" He looked around again with his teal eyes. "This has to be the most vivid dream I've ever experienced." Night placed her hands on her hips as she smiled. For an adult he didn't seem very different from a kid –at least in the 20-question aspect of them.
"Close, but not quite. This world is in fact real, as real as the world you come from, the two are just divided to most people –which is why most of your world isn't aware of this one's existence." She moved her arms to fold in front of her and turned away from him slightly, smiling into the sunlight that graced her skin with warmth and tranquillity. "The only way for a human to cross into the Night Dimension is through sleep, through dreams."
"And the landscape and people change with every different dreamer, right?" Memphis added from the thing he remembered the owl telling him, the pale blonde starting to piece everything together. He didn't exactly believe any of this was real of course; it seemed a little too fantastic to possibly be the truth. But he didn't exactly mind, it was an interesting experience. He hadn't dreamed like this since he was a kid.
NiGHTS turned back to the blonde and nodded with an approving smile. "Smart one, you have a good memory. And, chances are some of the regions in this place have already been created from pieces of your heart and memories." She grew a thoughtful look as her azure eyes studied him, an interesting thought suddenly crossing her mind. "Actually, I'm curious to know what kind of worlds you've created. I've never seen what adults dream about."
The man before her tilted his head a little, an eyebrow rising in curiosity as he slipped both his hands into his pockets –apparently a bit of a nervous habit of his. "Wait, are you saying the dreams of adults don't happen in this place? Why's that?"
NiGHTS sighed and allowed her hands to go limp, the female maren shrugging a little for lack of anything better to do. "I'm not exactly sure why. I actually haven't really personally met an adult before –you're the first. But Owl told me once that it could be due to the fact adults dream differently to younger people like teens and kids. Something to do with the fact their imagination is gradually lost over time, and they become disconnected with this dimension." NiGHTS frowned and shook her head slowly. "It's a shame really."
"Well I can definitely understand that…" Memphis bowed his head a little as he thought about her words. This was turning out to be one hell of an elaborate dream. Still he had to wonder, if adults were rare here, why had he made it into the world?
For a few moments, silence gripped the two beings and became their only language. Until NiGHTS had decided the world had become too quiet and perked up once again.
"Anyhow, feel up for a search of Nightopia in order to find an octopus that likes to hang out in pots and occasionally poops out rings?" The look Memphis was giving the female caused NiGHTS to explode into a grin as she floated close to him, extending a gloved hand out with a rather refined air to her movements. If there was anything that could pull her out of a down mood, it was messing with Octopaw. "It's one heck of a riot despite how I described it, trust me!"
The man itched the side of his jaw slightly as he tried to comprehend what exactly the purple jester was going on about, but after a while he simply gave in. The honesty in her face spoke for itself, there was no doubt about that. And so finally, with a shrug of his shoulders and a rather peaceful disposition, the teal eyed man simply smiled and nodded.
"Sure, you haven't seemed to steer me wrong as of yet… Let's go on one heck of an adventure."
Little did he know how how much of a wild adventure he'd just agreed to be taken upon, what they were all about to be taken upon.
xXXXXXx
A/N: Was it alright? Worth continuing? Because I have no idea. Please R&R and tell me what you think!
Thank you for taking the time out of your busy schedules to read my lousy writing :3